Almost Yesterday
by ElectronicYarn
Summary: The past months have not been kind to Weiss. She's faced the destruction of her school, the machinations of her scheming brother, flying grimm, and deadly bandits. But now that she's been reunited with Yang, she must face a far more insidious enemy: her own heart. Weiss can no longer ignore the feelings she's developed for Yang, and confronting them will take all of her courage.
1. The Other Side

_Author's Note:_ _I know I'm not the first person to do this, but I've decided to put my own spin on all that Freezerburn shipping fuel in Volume 5._

 _Part of this story overlaps with a scene from the actual show. I have deliberately not re-watched that bit of the Volume so that I don't just regurgitate what you've all already seen. (You have seen Volume 5 by now, right?) I guess what I'm saying is to expect things to be different from how they played out in actual RWBY._

 _I feel I should mention something ahead of time. Love triangles aren't really my thing. I try to keep any hint of them out of my stories, especially considering how, uh, passionate people get over their favorite pairings. Due to the nature of Volume 5, there is a suggestion of a triangle-like relationship in this fic, so let me reiterate that this is a Freezerburn story and nothing else._

 _This story was written just after Volume 5 ended._

* * *

 **Chapter 1: The Other Side**

Weiss could scarcely believe it, but she'd finally arrived in Mistral. It hadn't been the first journey she'd taken to the kingdom or even its capital, but it had been decidedly more trying than her last. Instead of an uneventful flight on a Schnee Dust Company airship, she'd been a runaway, a stowaway, and a captive. Given the choice, Weiss would have preferred fewer bandits and fewer fiery crashes in her travels. Fortunately, her situation had improved a great deal since her reunion with Yang and Ruby.

Weiss still wasn't sure how Ruby and her uncle had secured the use of a house in Mistral's prestigious upper ward, especially one so large. Ruby had never even been to Mistral before, and Qrow didn't exactly strike Weiss as the type to have the necessary money or social connections. But however Ruby and Qrow had come by the house, one thing was for certain; the view couldn't be beat. Right now Weiss was looking out of a hallway window. Pristine, white buildings decorated the mountainside below her, offset beautifully by a backdrop of misty, wooded hills. The sight was breathtaking, but unfortunately for Weiss, it was doing very little to distract her from her troubles.

Weiss had endured a great deal of trauma since Beacon's fall. However, yesterday had gone a long way toward soothing her hurt. She wasn't usually one to indulge in nostalgia—she had enough things she wanted to accomplish with her life that she just didn't have the time—but a little nostalgia had turned out to be exactly what she'd needed. She never would have guessed that good food and lively conversation with her friends would be enough to make her feel so much more at ease. It had almost been like she'd stepped back in time and found herself at Beacon again.

In many ways, yesterday had been even better for Weiss than her time at Beacon, especially her first semester there. She hadn't felt the need to prove herself to be Ruby's superior. She hadn't butted heads with Yang over every little thing. And there hadn't been the constant, unrelenting pressure to measure up as the Schnee heiress. Weiss had been among her peers, welcome and accepted. Even Jaune's presence had been tolerable.

However, despite all the comfort that Weiss had found in Mistral, something had been bothering her ever since she'd unexpectedly met up with Yang again. There hadn't been time to worry about it when she and Yang had been trapped in a den of bloodthirsty bandits, and the afternoon following their escape to safety had been full of welcome distractions. But now that Weiss was alone, she couldn't stop thinking about what had happened after she'd broken free of that cage and stood by Yang's side again. It wasn't the danger or the serendipity of the moment that was preying on her mind; it was that she, Weiss Schnee, had hugged Yang.

As a rule, Weiss didn't enjoy hugs or being touched in general. And maybe she wouldn't have been so concerned if Yang had been the one to hug her. But Yang hadn't been. The incident had been all Weiss's own doing. Weiss tried to tell herself that it had just been a byproduct of the rush of emotions she'd felt after seeing a friendly face for the first time in months, but that didn't ring true. She'd been overjoyed to see Ruby again as well, but she'd hardly felt compelled to throw her arms around her, certainly not like with Yang.

Perhaps what baffled Weiss the most was that she'd delighted in the hug far more than she cared to admit. Just thinking about it now made her feel warm inside. She actually wanted to experience hugging Yang again. It was all very disconcerting. There were unquestionably people she cared about just as much as Yang, but she had no desire to express her fondness for them with any sort of physical gesture. Why should Yang be so special?

Weiss turned away from the window and glanced to her side. A few feet down the hallway from where she was standing was an unremarkable wooden door. The door led to one of the house's many guest rooms. Specifically, it led to Yang's guest room, and Weiss knew that Yang was inside. She'd seen her go in not long after her outburst this morning in the courtyard.

Weiss wanted to open the door up and walk through it, but she found herself rooted to the spot. She'd recently escaped her father, one of the most powerful men on Remnant. She'd literally crossed oceans and mountains. Yet here she was, stopped in her tracks by a simple door that didn't even have the decency to be locked. She couldn't think of anything more ridiculous.

Weiss stood there, exasperated with herself. Unfortunately, all the exasperation in the world wouldn't make the door magically swing open. Weiss knew she should just turn around and leave. If she couldn't muster up the courage to go and face Yang, there was no point to standing around the hallway looking foolish. But Weiss didn't leave. She couldn't. She had to know what that hug yesterday had meant.

Back when Weiss had first met Yang, she'd been jealous of Yang's good looks. It wasn't a sentiment that she'd ever expressed out loud, mostly on account of how petty it would've made her sound, but her feelings on the matter had been undeniable. Her jealousy had only grown when she and Yang had started living in the same dorm room together. Weiss had assumed that Yang's attractiveness was the result of hours spent primping and preening, but nothing could've been further from the truth. Yang never wore makeup. She didn't seem to have the slightest idea what a proper skin care regimen was. And although she clearly had excellent fashion sense, she rarely put any thought into what she wore from day to day. Nevertheless, from the moment Yang jumped out of bed in the morning until the moment she climbed back into it at night, she was effortlessly beautiful. The only bit of her appearance she seemed to care about at all was her wondrous mane of hair. The number of hair care products she used was simply staggering.

Things had only gotten worse as Weiss had come to know Yang better. Yang's cheerful personality, her infectious optimism, and her kind heart practically made her glow with an angelic light in Weiss's eyes. When Yang smiled, she lit up the room. When she laughed, she warmed the air. And when she fought, she fought with such confidence and passion that it sometimes made it difficult for Weiss to focus on anything else.

It hadn't been until well into Team RWBY's second semester that things had truly gotten out of hand. When Weiss and Yang had started training together for the doubles round of the Vytal Festival Tournament, Weiss had caught herself sneaking peeks at Yang—only when she was certain that Yang wasn't looking of course. Her voyeuristic desires had made her very uncomfortable, but she hadn't been able to stop herself. Back then she hadn't bothered to consider why she'd felt the need to leer at Yang, but she was certainly considering it now. She didn't like the conclusions she was drawing at all.

Weiss's jaw clenched. Unfortunately, the truth was painfully obvious. She was attracted to Yang. There was no use in denying it. She'd been attracted to Yang for some time now. And as much as Weiss hated platitudes, it seemed that Yang's absence had indeed made her heart grow fonder. Weiss had never truly admitted to herself how she felt because when she'd been the Schnee heiress that kind of thinking hadn't been allowed. But she was no longer an heiress. She might not even be a Schnee anymore, at least not in her family's eyes. She was free to think and feel as she wished. However, knowing how she felt and knowing how to act on those feelings were two very different things. Weiss didn't have the faintest clue as to what she should do with her strange urges. Maybe the correct course of action for her was to simply do nothing, but then again maybe it wasn't.

"Hey, Weiss!" a voice suddenly said from behind.

Weiss let out an undignified squeak as she jumped in alarm. She'd been so lost in thought that she hadn't heard anyone approaching. She spun around and saw Ruby's smiling face.

"Ruby! Don't sneak up on me like that!" Weiss exclaimed.

"Sorry!" Ruby said, holding up her hands apologetically. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's alright," Weiss said.

"What are you doing out here all by yourself?" Ruby asked.

Weiss's eyes darted to Yang's door for just a split second. "I was…thinking," she said.

"What about?" Ruby asked.

Weiss sighed internally. Of course Ruby would ask her that. Weiss's first instinct was to brush the whole thing off, but the more she thought about it the more she began to wonder if that was really the best thing for her to do. She doubted that she'd be able to sort through her feelings entirely on her own, but she also wasn't sure that she was ready to discuss them, even with Ruby.

"Weiss?" Ruby asked.

Weiss realized that she needed to say something to Ruby, and Ruby was, at the very least, a sympathetic ear.

"I was wondering…" Weiss said, picking her words very carefully. She wasn't exactly eager to get into the specifics of her situation. "Is there anyone that you…like?"

"Well of course there is!" Ruby said. "I like you. And Yang. And all our other friends too!"

"No, Ruby," Weiss said, shaking her head. "I meant is there someone that you like as more than a friend."

"You mean someone I…like-like?" Ruby asked, scratching her head.

Weiss sighed, out loud this time. "That's one way to phrase it, I suppose," she said.

Ruby looked lost in thought for a moment. Then she said, "I don't think so. Yang always said it was something that would happen to me someday, but I'm sixteen now and…well, I guess I'm not really into boys. At least not in that way."

"I'm not sure I am either," Weiss mumbled to herself. As the heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, she'd been subjected to an endless procession of would-be suitors over the years. None of them had ever held her interest. She'd always assumed that it had been because they'd all been dull, pretentious, insufferable, or all three. But now she wasn't so sure.

Ruby said, "Wait. If you're not into boys, does that mean you're into girls?"

Weiss's heart stopped in her chest when she realized not only what she'd just said, but that Ruby had heard her. "I…I…!" she sputtered in a panic. "I could ask you the same question!"

"Nope," Ruby said with a shrug. "I'm not really into anyone."

"You're not?" Weiss asked. She hadn't been expecting that kind of answer at all.

"Nope," Ruby repeated. "That's okay, isn't it?"

"Of course it's okay," Weiss said. "I'm just surprised."

"So what about you?" Ruby asked.

Weiss opened her mouth, but then she closed it again. She didn't know how to answer Ruby's question at all. She didn't even know what she wanted the answer to be. Eventually, she said, "I'm not sure."

"You're not sure?" Ruby asked. "Isn't that something you're supposed to know by now?"

"You would think so," Weiss said exasperatedly.

An excited look flashed across Ruby's face. "We should figure it out then!" she said.

"That's really not necessary," Weiss said.

"I've got it!" Ruby said, completely ignoring Weiss. "We can ask Yang!"

"What?! No!" Weiss shouted, louder than she'd intended.

"Well we don't have to, I guess," Ruby said, obviously taken aback by Weiss's flustered response.

"I'm sorry," Weiss said. "I just wouldn't feel comfortable talking to Yang about this."

"Okay," Ruby said.

"Out of curiosity," Weiss said. "Why Yang?"

"Because Yang likes boys _and_ girls," Ruby said.

"She does!?" Weiss asked. She'd honestly had no idea. A jolt of excitement involuntarily shot through her when she realized that she and Yang might be compatible, so to speak. Somehow, that made her feel even more conflicted.

Ruby said, "If you don't want to talk to Yang, we could go talk to Uncle Qrow. He's always telling stories about going on dates with girls. Although he never seems to finish them for some reason."

"Ruby…" Weiss said, shaking her head. "It's fine. Really. I appreciate you trying to help me, but we have more important things to worry about right now."

"Alright," Ruby said. "But you know I'm here for you. We all are."

"I know," Weiss said. "Thank you."

"Well then I'm going to go check on Yang," Ruby said. "I'm kind of worried about her."

Weiss looked over at Yang's door yet again. Ruby did have a good point. Yang's outburst about Blake this morning had been concerning. While Weiss still didn't always understand Blake, she had come to respect her. However, finding that respect had taken her time. Yang, on the other hand, had been best friends with Blake from almost the moment they'd become partners. Yang's vitriolic comments had been extremely uncharacteristic of her.

Weiss suddenly realized how self-centered she was being. Instead of wasting the morning worrying about her feelings, she should have been worrying about Yang's. Yang had given her a great deal of comfort simply by being there for her yesterday, and this was an opportunity to pay her back.

"Ruby," Weiss said. "Would it be okay if I checked on Yang first? By myself?"

"Sure," Ruby said. "But only if you tell me right away if she's not doing alright."

"I will," Weiss said. "Thank you, Ruby."

"I guess I'll go see how everyone else is doing then," Ruby said. "Jaune, Ren, and Nora are probably up by now."

"I'm certain they are," Weiss said.

Ruby left, and Weiss found herself alone once more. She turned to Yang's door. It was time for her to stop cowering like a frightened child. She straightened herself up, firmly grasped the doorknob, and let herself into Yang's room.

When Weiss passed through the door, the first thing her eyes fell on was Yang. Yang was lying on one of the room's two beds. Her arms were tucked underneath her head, and she was gazing up at the ceiling. The sun was shining in through the windows, bathing Yang with its light. Weiss's heart fluttered in her chest. She forgot for a moment that she was there to comfort Yang, not admire her. Yang was just so beautiful to her. Maybe she really wasn't attracted to men. Maybe she was. Maybe Yang was an exception to the rule. Weiss didn't know, and right now it didn't matter.

Weiss could have stood there looking at Yang for hours, but when she noticed that Yang was missing her ever-present smile, her heart sank. Despite the cheerful front that Yang had put up yesterday, Weiss could see now just how much she was still hurting inside.

Weiss shut the door behind her and quietly walked over to the room's other bed. She sat down on it and folded her hands in her lap. She desperately wanted to comfort Yang, but she had no idea how to even start.

Yang didn't acknowledge Weiss's presence. Her eyes continued to stare listlessly upward.

A long moment passed, but eventually Yang said, "I don't want to talk about it."

"Okay," Weiss said.

"Okay?" Yang asked, finally looking at Weiss. "What does that mean?"

"It means that we don't have to talk about anything you don't want to talk about," Weiss said.

"Alright. Good," Yang said.

Weiss could see tumultuous thoughts swirling about in Yang's eyes. She wanted to tell Yang that everything would be alright, but the words got jumbled up inside of her, so she remained silent.

The silence dragged on until it threatened to grow awkward. Weiss desperately tried to think of something cheerful to talk about that might take Yang's mind off of things. Eventually, she said, "I've been thinking about you a lot since…since we all left Vale."

"Oh yeah?" Yang asked.

"Yes," Weiss said. "I would have called, but the CCT Network is still down."

"Yeah," Yang said.

"You look…good," Weiss said. Her growing nervousness was starting to slip into her voice.

"Thanks," Yang said absently.

Weiss silently berated herself. She wasn't sure if she was attempting to comfort Yang or to flirt with her. Either way, she was failing at both. Maybe she should have just kept her mouth shut after all.

Yang suddenly pulled her prosthetic arm out from behind her head. She held it outstretched above her and stared at it like an infant noticing her own hands for the first time. Weiss was honestly still surprised every time she saw Yang's new artificial limb. Yang wore it so well that it was easy for Weiss to forget that it was there. She had no idea how Yang had acquired such an expensive piece of technology, but she was glad that she had. For someone like Yang, going through life with only one arm would have been a cruel fate.

Weiss was impressed by how quickly Yang had recovered from the trauma of losing a limb, at least on the surface. When she was her usual cheerful self, like she had been yesterday, it was as if nothing had happened. In a strange way Weiss even felt that Yang's new prosthetic suited her. She certainly wouldn't have wished for Yang to suffer such an injury, but it made Yang look even more like the stalwart huntress she'd always been destined to become.

Yang lowered her arm. Then she sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed. She was facing Weiss now, but her eyes were cast down to the floor. "I'm sorry about what my mom did to you," she said.

"You don't need to apologize for that," Weiss said. "You had nothing to do with it."

"If I'd known, I'd have come and saved you," Yang said.

A blush colored Weiss's cheeks. She hoped that Yang didn't notice. She'd never imagined herself as a damsel in distress—the very idea of it ran contrary to her principles—but the thought of Yang swooping in and plucking her out of danger was more than a little intriguing.

Weiss reached out with the intent of touching Yang's shoulder, but she quickly pulled her hand back. "I know you would have saved me, Yang," she said. "We're teammates. We rely on each other."

"Yeah. Teammates," Yang said dejectedly.

Yang's fists clenched together, and her right hand began to tremble. The sight worried Weiss. Before she could think better of it, she shifted over to the other bed and sat right beside Yang. Then she put her arm around Yang's shoulders. It was the second time in as many days that she'd been the one to initiate a hug.

"It's alright, Yang," Weiss said soothingly.

Tears began gathering in the corners of Yang's eyes. "She just left us," Yang whispered.

"She?" Weiss asked. "Do you mean…Blake?"

"Yeah," Yang said. "Blake."

Weiss was a bit perplexed. She wasn't sure how Blake had suddenly come into this conversation. She said, "I'm sure Blake will come seek us out if she needs us."

"Well maybe _I_ need _her_!" Yang blurted out.

Something in Yang's tone of voice struck a chord with Weiss. An ugly feeling shot through her, and it took her a moment to figure out why. The way Yang was talking it almost sounded like she had feelings for Blake.

"Maybe I…maybe…" Yang said with quivering lips. Then she buried her head in her hands and started sobbing uncontrollably.

Weiss had never seen Yang act so vulnerable before. Her heart ached at the sight. She hugged Yang even tighter and rocked her back and forth.

"It's okay. It's okay," Weiss whispered, but she wasn't feeling any more okay than Yang was. She understood now what a fool she'd been. While she'd been struggling with her feelings for Yang, she'd just assumed that Yang would automatically return said feelings. However, that clearly wasn't the case. Weiss knew it wasn't fair of her to be resentful, but right now she desperately wanted Yang to need her as badly as she so obviously needed Blake.

Weiss swallowed her hope and did her best to push her own issues aside. She refused, she absolutely refused, to fail in her duty as Yang's friend. The truth was that Yang did need her right now, even if it wasn't in the way she might have wanted.

Weiss let Yang cry her eyes out. She hadn't forgotten her promise to Ruby, and she would go and find her. But that could wait until after Yang had calmed down.

Suddenly, Yang's arms reached out and wrapped themselves around Weiss. Weiss sucked in a breath. To be held by Yang, even in these circumstances, was more than she could have asked for. A bitter-sweet feeling rose up inside of her, and she savored it for all it was worth.

* * *

 _Author's Note: Weiss really has it bad for Yang. I told her to tone down her gushing a little bit, but she didn't listen to me. She_ never _listens to me._

 _So this was supposed to be a shot one when I first sat down to write it, but somehow it turned into a two chapter story. (You didn't really think I'd let things end on such a sad note, did you?) I don't seem to be capable of writing anything that's short these days, but I guess I shouldn't complain about that too much._

 _For those of you who are new around here, I like writing Ruby as an ace, as demonstrated here. There's no particular reason for it other than I like it and it seems to fit her character._

 _Oh, and Ruby saying she's sixteen finally isn't me aging up the characters. Back in Volume 4 Yang mentioned that she's an adult now. In my mind that means everyone gets one year added on to their age. It works out that way too if you stop and analyze the show's timeline. Which I have. Because I don't have anything better to do apparently._

 _As always, I welcome constructive criticism. Please feel free to leave a review. And if you like what you've read, taking the time to favorite and/or follow really helps me out. You can also find me on tumblr (electronicyarn) if you want to send me a message or be notified of updates._


	2. Sunrise at Dusk

**Chapter 2: Sunrise at Dusk**

Yesterday when Weiss and Yang had confronted Raven in her camp, Weiss hadn't believed her when she'd told them that magic was real. Even after Raven's practical demonstration, Weiss was still half-convinced that all she'd seen was an elaborate parlor trick. However, the longer she spent in Mistral the more she was forced to consider the possibility that her eyes hadn't deceived her.

The farm boy that Ruby's uncle had found, Oscar, had made things even more perplexing. Even if Weiss were willing to accept that the soul of Professor Ozpin was somehow inhabiting Oscar's body, she would have preferred a better explanation as to how, other than magic and divine punishment. She wasn't quite ready to concede that the world made even less sense than she'd previously feared, but at least the mystery of it all was something to occupy her mind. After her encounter with Yang that morning, she welcomed the distraction.

Weiss didn't regret spending time comforting Yang, but it had been very trying. She'd left Yang's room feeling emotionally raw. Eager for some relief, she'd wholeheartedly joined in with Ruby and everyone else that afternoon to participate in the training that Oscar, or rather, Ozpin was giving them. Like yesterday, it had been delightfully nostalgic. Once again Weiss had been able to pretend that she was back at Beacon, if only for a few hours. The illusion hadn't been completely seamless however; Yang and Blake had both been conspicuously absent.

Weiss's own personal training regimen had been severely curtailed while she'd been trapped in Atlas, but overall she'd been pleased with her performance today. However, she'd forgotten just how exhausting Ruby's boundless enthusiasm could be in such large doses. Now that the evening had come, Weiss had excused herself from the group and left Ruby, Jaune, Ren, and Nora to their own devices. At first she'd thought to seek solace in the guest room she'd been provided with, but she was far too restless for that. So instead she'd decided to wander through the sizable house's sprawling hallways.

Now that Weiss had gained some emotional distance from the traumatic morning, she was beginning to appreciate just how illuminating her encounter with Yang had been. She felt like she'd come to much better terms with her feelings. It would be a lie to say that she wasn't disappointed that she couldn't act on them, but now that Yang was safely beyond her reach, she felt much less nervous about the situation. It was simply better this way, she told herself. A real relationship with Yang would be fraught with peril. The fantasy of one was completely safe.

Weiss was actually hoping that her errant attraction toward Yang had been an anomaly. Her life was complicated enough without having to worry about desires that a distressing number of people wouldn't be willing to accept. Whatever the case was, Weiss was determined to get over Yang quickly. Silently pining away for her teammate wouldn't help anybody, least of all herself.

Weiss turned a corner in the hallway. Up ahead she saw a small stairwell branching off from the main path. Light was shining up from it. Weiss was surprised. She hadn't thought that anyone was in this part of the house right now. Intrigued, she walked up to the stairs and glanced down them.

Below, Weiss saw a large, open room. Her curiosity piqued, she walked down the stairs and found herself in an indoor sparring area. Practice weapons of every shape and size were mounted on the walls, and various pieces of training equipment were scattered about here and there. At the back of the room, a large pair of sliding doors were open to the outside, giving Weiss and excellent view of the night sky.

Weiss was about to head back up the stairs when she noticed something. In one corner of the room a punching bag was hanging from the ceiling. It was rocking back and forth on its chains ever so slightly, making a quiet creaking noise. Someone had been using it very recently.

Weiss walked over to the punching bag. She put her hand on it to stop its swaying. The bag didn't look all that old, but it was already sagging in the middle.

Weiss's eyes traced an invisible trail along the floor from the punching bag over to the sliding doors. She wasn't sure she wanted to follow it, but her feet began to move of their own accord.

As soon as Weiss stepped out into the night, she found that she wasn't alone. Yang was there, leaning against the outside wall of the house. She was looking up at the stars with a slight smile on her face.

Weiss had somehow expected to find Yang out here, but at the same time, she hadn't. She wasn't sure she was ready to see Yang again so soon. Contradictory emotions rose up in her. She wanted to leave, but she yearned to stay. She wanted to ignore how beautiful Yang was, but she couldn't help but admire how lovely she looked in the moonlight. Weiss's feelings got jumbled up inside of her until it became difficult for her to distinguish one from another.

Yang turned and looked at Weiss. The smile on her face got bigger. "Hiya, Weiss," she said.

The cheerfulness in Yang's voice caught Weiss off guard. When she'd last seen Yang she'd been a sobbing wreck. "Are you feeling better?" Weiss asked despite the answer being obvious.

"Lots better," Yang said. "Thanks for being there for me."

"It was no trouble," Weiss said, but inside she found herself conflicted. This—seeing Yang acting like her old, cheerful self—had been exactly what Weiss had wanted. But for some reason, she wasn't entirely pleased about it. It didn't seem fair that she was still dealing with this morning's emotional fallout while Yang had made a complete recovery.

"So," Yang said, taking a step forward. "What are you doing out here?"

"I was just…" Weiss started, but she trailed off when she realized that she didn't have an answer to Yang's question.

"You were just…?" Yang prompted. She took a few more steps forward. Weiss couldn't help but notice there was a certain sway in Yang's hips. She couldn't even begin to understand why, but she found the subtle motions alluring. It was distracting enough that she hardly even noticed as Yang walked up unusually close to her.

"Weiss?" Yang asked.

Weiss's eyes slowly traveled upward. She knew she needed to say something, anything really, but something about Yang's posture was making it difficult for her to concentrate. Yang's hand was resting on her hip which was cocked to the side. Her shoulders were relaxed, and her chest was thrust forward just enough to call attention to itself. Weiss desperately sought Yang's eyes lest she start gawking, but even there she found no relief. There was a glint in them that Weiss had never seen before. It held her gaze captive.

"Wei-iss…" Yang said, sounding amused.

Weiss shook her head to clear it. "I'm sorry," she said. "I suppose…I suppose I came out here to look for you." It was the only answer she could think of.

"Oh yeah?" Yang asked. She sounded excited, but Weiss had no idea why. Then, seemingly apropos of nothing, Yang said, "You know, I talked to Ruby this afternoon. She told me some interesting things."

Had Weiss been thinking clearly, alarm bells would have been going off in her head, but as it was, she was too busy marveling at how soft Yang's lips looked when they were this close. She absently asked, "What kind of things?"

"Nothing all that special," Yang said. "But she made me realize I've been overlooking something big."

"I have as well," Weiss said.

A hopeful smile crossed Yang's face. She reached out with her left hand and brushed her fingers against Weiss's cheek. The slight contact sent a shiver down Weiss's spine.

Yang started to pull away, but Weiss reached up and pressed her hand against Yang's, holding it there. She knew that Yang just meant the gesture as a friendly one, but she didn't want Yang to let go.

Yang's smile grew wider. Weiss would've sworn that it was bright enough to light up the night. Her eyes focused on Yang's lips again as they drifted closer and closer to hers. She silently longed for Yang to kiss her, knowing full well that she never would, which was why Weiss was taken completely and utterly by surprise when Yang did exactly that.

Weiss's eyes shot wide open, and she stiffened up as Yang's lips tenderly pressed into hers. Thoughts and emotions bombarded her faster than she could process them as she desperately tried to make sense of what was happening. The only thing coherent that managed to pass through her head was that Yang's lips were even more wonderfully soft than she'd imagined them to be.

Yang pulled back, but her smile quickly faded when she saw the near-panic on Weiss's face. "That was okay, right?" Yang asked worriedly. "You wanted me to do that, right?"

Weiss had barely heard a word that Yang had said, and speaking was beyond her at the moment. All she knew was that one brief kiss from Yang was hardly enough to satisfy the hunger that had awoken inside of her. She reached up, pulled Yang's head back down to meet hers, and kissed Yang soundly.

It only took Yang a fraction of a second to start kissing Weiss back. Weiss was loathed to admit that she was severely lacking in experience as a kisser, but she didn't let that hold her back. She threw caution to the wind and let instinct take over.

Yang's arms circled around Weiss and pulled her in close. Weiss could feel every dip and curve of Yang's body as it pressed into hers. A new kind of excitement shot through her, making her want even more. It seemed that Yang had the same idea because her tongue tickled Weiss's lips. Weiss opened up to Yang and let her deepen the kiss.

Yang pulled Weiss through the sliding doors, back into the relative privacy of the sparring room, never letting her lips leave Weiss's. Weiss felt herself growing lightheaded from a lack of oxygen. She pulled back just long enough to gasp in a breath of air before she attacked Yang's lips again. She could scarcely believe what was happening. She kept expecting to suddenly wake up and discover that this had all been a dream, but Yang's powerful presence convinced her otherwise.

Weiss's hands slid down Yang's back. They dug into Yang's jacket, but that wasn't enough for Weiss. She wanted to feel Yang's skin, and all the fabric covering Yang was getting in the way. Weiss let go of Yang with one hand and managed to squeeze it in between the two of them. She immediately started tugging at Yang's zipper.

Before Weiss could unzip Yang's jacket completely, Yang pulled back out of Weiss's arms with a surprised look on her face. Weiss suddenly realized that her attempt to remove Yang's jacket had sent a very strong message, a message she hadn't necessarily intended to convey.

A huge grin spread across Yang's lips. Weiss wasn't sure if it excited her, terrified her, or both. The situation was rapidly spiraling out of control. Weiss knew she should say something to Yang, but then Yang zipped her jacket open the rest of the way and let it fall off her shoulders to the floor.

Weiss was helpless to prevent her eyes from wandering all over Yang. The tight-fitting crop top that Yang was wearing left no doubts as to the delicious shape of her body, but it concealed just enough to let Weiss's imagination run wild with possibilities. The sight of Yang's well-defined abs peeking out from the bottom hem of her top and the entrancing swell of her breasts made Weiss's mouth go dry.

Weiss forcefully pried her eyes away from Yang's body, but all that did was make Yang laugh. Yang gave Weiss a sultry smile and said, "Don't be shy. I want you to look."

Weiss felt sweat beading on her forehead. Despite Yang having given her permission, she very pointedly did not look Yang over again. She still had her sense of propriety, even if it was in tatters.

Yang sauntered up to Weiss like a tigress stalking her prey. Then she hooked her arm around Weiss and pulled her in even closer than before. Weiss's breath grew heavy. Without Yang's jacket there to get in the way, the experience of Yang holding her like this was downright erotic.

Yang leaned forward and whispered into Weiss's ear, "Just wait. You haven't seen anything yet."

A deep blush colored Weiss's cheeks. She wasn't sure anymore if this was a dream come true or a nightmare made real. She wanted Yang to stop, but she was also desperate for her to continue. However, Weiss's growing trepidations were momentarily smothered when Yang's lips found her earlobe and began to nibble.

Weiss's trembling hands came up and wrapped themselves around Yang. She could feel the softness of Yang's skin and the wonderful warmth that was radiating from it. Yang's lips traveled downward, trailing kisses along Weiss's neck. A whimper escaped Weiss. Yesterday a friendly hug had been bold, new territory for her. This was far, far beyond what she could even describe. It was too much, and yet she couldn't bring herself to protest.

Yang reached for the clasp concealed by the jewel on Weiss's collar and deftly opened it, exposing more of Weiss's neck. Her lips slid down even lower.

"Yang…" Weiss said weakly, but she moaned as Yang found the crook of her neck.

Yang reached up and began sliding Weiss's jacket off her shoulders. Weiss felt the metallic tips of Yang's prosthetic fingers glide across her skin. It wasn't a painful or unpleasant sensation, but it was unexpected enough to push her ever so slightly out of the moment. Suddenly, Weiss's rational mind took control again, and she realized exactly what was about to happen if she let this continue.

"Stop! Stop!" Weiss said forcefully. She pushed Yang away from her.

"Weiss?" Yang asked, sounding baffled. "What's wrong?"

Weiss spun around and hastily refastened her collar. "I…I'm…" she stammered, hugging her arms around herself.

"Weiss, I'm so sorry!" Yang said. "I thought…! I'm sorry."

"No, it's okay," Weiss said, although her voice was shaking. "You didn't do anything wrong."

"It's not okay!" Yang said. "You…! When you…! I mean, Ruby said…!"

"You mentioned Ruby before," Weiss said. "What exactly did she tell you?"

"That you were into girls," Yang said.

" _What_?!" Weiss exclaimed, spinning back around. "I implied! At best implied! That I wasn't sure where I stood on that particular issue! And-and even if I did say such things to Ruby, why would you assume that meant you could kiss me!?"

"Well..." Yang started. "Ruby said you didn't want to talk to me about it. And then I thought about some of the things you said to me this morning about how you'd been thinking about me. And then outside just now it looked like you were checking me out. And then my hand on your cheek, and…. I guess I just…assumed?"

Weiss let out a breath. Her outrage had thankfully pushed away her anxiety over what had almost just happened. "I suppose I can see why you might come to such a conclusion," she said.

"So are you still, uh, undecided about girls?" Yang asked.

"Of course I am," Weiss said, crossing her arms. "Why would you think otherwise?"

"You were trying to undress me just a minute ago," Yang said, gesturing to draw attention to her noticeable lack of a jacket.

Weiss felt her cheeks get warm. "I was just…going with the flow," she said.

"Uh-huh," Yang said dryly. She clearly didn't believe Weiss.

"I'm sorry," Weiss said. "I shouldn't have done that."

"Don't be sorry," Yang said with a grin. "It was pretty hot."

"I'm being serious!" Weiss said.

"So am I," Yang said.

Weiss's blush returned yet again, even deeper than before. She tried to stay mad at Yang, but she found that her anger was quickly dissipating. "No. I should apologize," she said. "I misled you."

"No really, don't be sorry," Yang said. "I wasn't exactly expecting you to want to go that far right away anyway. Besides, it's way more fun if you wait until after a few dates for that kind of thing."

"I wouldn't know," Weiss muttered. "I've never done anything like this before."

"You mean not with a girl?" Yang asked.

"Not with anyone," Weiss said.

"Wait," Yang said. "Are you saying you've never been on a date before?!"

"Not one that wasn't arranged by my father, or at least heavily chaperoned," Weiss said.

Yang looked perplexed for a moment. But then she gave Weiss a tiny, sincere smile. "Would you like to go on one?" she asked.

Weiss was so used to her suitors having ulterior motives that she almost wasn't able to take Yang's proposal at face value. But she knew Yang. Yang didn't have an agenda. Yang didn't see her as a prize. Yang just genuinely wanted to go on a date with her. It was incredibly touching.

Weiss's anxiety returned but for wholly different reasons this time. A voice inside her head was screaming at her to say yes to Yang, but after what had just happened, she wasn't sure that she should listen to it. However, she didn't think she had it in her to tell Yang no either. She said, "I doubt we have time for something as frivolous as a date."

"Who said it would be frivolous?" Yang asked. "I take these things seriously."

"E-even so," Weiss stammered, "we have important things to do here in Mistral."

"According to that Oscar kid we're going to be here for like a month," Yang said. "We can't spend the whole time training."

"Yes, but…" Weiss said. She was rapidly running out of excuses, so she tried a diversionary tactic. "Why do you even want to go on a date with me, Yang?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Yang asked. "If I'd known you'd be into it, I would've asked you out sooner!"

"But what about—?" Weiss cut herself off when she realized what she was about to say.

"What about what?" Yang asked.

Weiss sighed. She reluctantly finished her question. "What about Blake?"

Yang's eyes narrowed. "What about Blake?"

"I thought you might be…interested in her," Weiss said.

"Why'd you think that?" Yang asked.

"The way you were talking this morning it sounded like you had feelings for her," Weiss admitted.

A scowl crossed Yang's face. She was silent for a moment. Weiss began to fret that she'd offended Yang horribly, but then Yang said, "Blake's my friend, Weiss. At least I thought she was."

"I'm sure she still is," Weiss said.

"Well I'm not," Yang said. "Part of being friends means being there for each other. And she's not here."

"Maybe she wants to be!" Weiss said. "Maybe she can't be here right now. We don't know what kind of situation she might be caught up in."

"Yeah. I guess." Yang looked down at the floor. When she looked up again, she said, "I never asked how you ended up in that cage. My mom's camp isn't anywhere near Atlas."

"It's a long story," Weiss said.

"I bet," Yang said. "But you don't have to tell it to me if you don't want to. What I'm getting at is that we've both been through a lot. I think we could both use something that'll make us happy."

"And you think that something is us dating?" Weiss asked.

"Yeah, I do," Yang said. "Don't you?"

Weiss thought about it. "I'd like to believe so," she said. "But I'm not sure if I really am…that way."

"Yeah, I know," Yang said. "You told me that already."

"I just want you to understand that things might not work out between us," Weiss said.

Yang laughed. "You're never sure if things are going to work out when you date someone. But…." Yang took a step forward.

Weiss could tell that Yang was going to kiss her again, and she didn't try to stop her. When Yang's lips softly met Weiss's, her eyes fluttered closed. This kiss was entirely different from the last. It was slow and gentle. Instead of explosive desire, it was filled with tender care. Weiss drank it in. Somehow this was far better than the frenzied passion from moments earlier. This she had no doubts about. This she wanted without reservation.

Yang's and Weiss's lips parted. Weiss opened her eyes and was greeted by Yang's beaming smile.

Yang said, "But I'm pretty sure that we can make things work. So what do you say, Weiss? You want to go on a date?"

"Yes," Weiss breathed.

"We can take it slow if you want," Yang said. "Since you're new to dating and all."

"I would appreciate that," Weiss said. "Just like I would appreciate you having more discretion than your sister when it comes to discussing my personal life with others."

Yang chuckled. "You can count on me."

"So…" Weiss said hesitantly. "How exactly _do_ we go about dating?"

"Dinner tomorrow? Just you and me?" Yang asked. "I'll cook you up something good."

"You can cook?" Weiss asked, surprised.

"Yup! But don't tell anybody," Yang said with a wink. "I only cook for special occasions."

"That sounds lovely," Weiss said, and much to her surprise, it really did.

"Then it's a date," Yang said.

"I'll look forward to it," Weiss said. "Although in the meantime there is something you can do for me."

"Oh yeah?" Yang asked.

"I could use a hug," Weiss said.

Yang grinned. "Anything you want."

Yang's arm circled around Weiss, and she hugged her tight. Weiss sighed happily as she rested her head against Yang's shoulder. So much had happened to her over the past few months, but there in Yang's arms, she finally felt safe and secure again.

Weiss had no idea what to expect on her date tomorrow. She was having trouble even convincing herself that it was actually going to happen, but she was determined that it would. She finally felt like she was moving forward again instead of looking back. She would always treasure her memories of Beacon, but she was ready to move past them now and claim her future for herself. And with any luck, Yang would be a big part of that future.

* * *

 _Author's Note: I'm so glad that Blake is back with her team in canon._

 _Anyway, this was a very challenging story for me to write. Getting Yang and Weiss to hook up while acknowledging and paying respect to the established relationship between Yang and Blake (whether you interpret it as potentially romantic or not) was, shall we say, difficult. I'm glad I spread it out into two chapters. It gave me some narrative space to work with._

 _Well that's it for this story. I got some more one-shots brewing up. So I'll see you next time!_

 _As always, I welcome constructive criticism. Please feel free to leave a review. And if you like what you've read, taking the time to favorite and/or follow really helps me out. You can also find me on tumblr (electronicyarn) if you want to send me a message or be notified of updates._


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